Reaching out a Little
by Slayzer
Summary: Ezra has a problem and goes to Hera for her help and discretion. However if Ezra's going to grow and not only as a Jedi but as a person then he'll have to learn to put aside his fear and vanity and reach out to the people around.


Star Wars Rebels is owned by Disney and I make no money off this parody. Also this story dose a little throwback to events from the Star Wars novel New Dawn. (Kanan was a very different person years ago)

First I apologizes to anyone still wanting on an update from some of my other work that I have neglected. However this one shot was the only writing I've felt like doing in months. I've been depressed and starved for inspiration for a while now.

Only recently have I felt like getting back on the fanfiction horse after it bucked me off.

Reaching out a Little.

By Slayzer

-Ghost-

Hera was at the helm of the Ghost but being that the ship was flying though hyperspace there wasn't much for her to do but check up on the sensor readings. Still this was her place on the Ghost and it felt right being here. Besides the view up here was the best in the whole ship.

A tentative knock on the doorway drew the twi'lek pilots attentions away from the vista of hyperspace.

It was Ezra the newest and youngest member of the Ghost crew. He looked pensive with a datapad in one hand. "Hera, can we talk for moment?"

Hera nodded, a move that sent her headtails waving slightly with the motion. She gave the young human boy a kind smile and beckoned to the copilot seat. "Of course Ezra, step into my office."

Ezra shut the door behind him and took the seat next to Hera. "First what I tell you can't get back to anyone else on the ship. Not Kanan or Sabine and definitely not Zeb."

"Okay." Hera said turning in her seat to face Ezra. "What's the matter then?"

Ezra sighed and handed Hera the datapad he had with him. "Kanan gave me this to study. It's some basic Jedi philosophy on the Force and our relationship with it. I'm having some trouble understanding it."

"Ezra, I'm not an expert on the Force so I don't know how much help I can be."

Ezra gave a heavy sigh and scratched the back of his head. "It's not the Force that I don't understand, it's the words."

Hera blinked a few times and then understood what Ezra was trying to say. "You can't read?"

"No, I can read!" Ezra said defensively but then slowly withdrew into himself after the outburst. "Just not very well."

"Ezra why don't you want Kanan to know? He'd help you with this, anyone of us would."

"Look I went to the school of street smarts and hard knocks where I majored in pickpocketing, lock breaking and petty theft. So my formal studies are bit lacking."

"I understand that..."

"So I don't want be seen as the dumb street rat orphan!" Ezra said cutting Hera off. "I need to feel like I'm part of the crew and not some charity case."

Hera put her hands on the shoulders of the sullen boy. "Ezra you are part the crew and as such I will not allow anyone to talk trash about my crew, that goes for you talking bad about yourself. So don't ever let me hear you talking down about yourself like that again, okay."

Ezra sighed again before looking up and into Hera's green eyes. "So will you help me or not."

"I'll help you but you should know that everyone on the Ghost would help you if you asked."

"Even Chopper?" Ezra asked with a slight smile.

Hera rolled her eyes and returned his soft smile as she moved to sit next to Ezra instead of across from him. "Maybe not Chopper."

Hera then helped Ezra with his reading. Like he said he knew how to read but it was slow going and he would often stumble over the larger and more complex words. Still as Hera helped Ezra in the back of her mind she was worried. Ezra had made her promise not to tell anyone and she hated to break her word but she knew she'd have too.

Hera only hoped that Ezra would forgive her for it.

-Next Day-

Kanan and Ezra sat on the floor of Kanan's cabin in a Force mediation form. "Quiet your mind and feel the Force around you. Feel it in your breath, in your pulse and in your mind."

Ezra breathed deeply and let his mind focus inwardly to the Force and then outwardly into everything.

Kanan watched his young padawan closely. "Ezra, you must know that your not a charity case."

The connection Ezra had been building with the universe snapped like cheap twine. "I can't believe Hera told you, I trusted her!"

"Don't get mad at Hera, she's was just concerned about your well being. If it wasn't for that she would have kept her word."

"It seems we have different ideas about my well being." Ezra said getting to he feet.

"Ezra wait." Kanan said firmly before his padawan could reach the door.

"Whatever it is make it quick!"

"Your not a charity case but I was. Years ago when Hera and I first meet I was an alcoholic canteen brawling roughneck. She didn't think much of me even after I saved her life a few times and it took saving a moon and the world below it before she change her mind about me. Still she doesn't hold the man I was against me or the choices I made. Ezra you had to give up a lot to survive, perhaps more then even you realize, but no one here will think less of you for doing so. And you should know your not alone anymore. We all want help you put right some of those hard choices, like getting you a formal education."

Ezra sighed and moved away from the door. "Who else knows."

"Everyone on the ship."

Ezra threw his hands up. "Great, now Zeb will never let me live this down."

"On the contrariety, Zeb's agreed to help Hera teach you reading."

Ezra ran his hands over his face to hide his embarrassment. "And I take it Sabine knows as well then."

"Is that a problem?" Kanan asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh no why would that be a problem!? After all it's not like in addition to Sabine's beautiful looks, deadly skills and amazing talent that I'm also intimidated by her intelligence. She only speaks several alien languages so It's no problem at all if Sabine sees me as even more of a child now."

The door to Kanan's room opened and the aforementioned mandalorian girl walked in with a datapad in hand. She looked at the stunned Ezra and smiled. "It's not childish to have a few shortcomings. However confronting them dose make you more mature in my opinion. So now that your done with your Jedi training for the day how about you let me help you with some math work?"

Ezra swallowed a lump in his throat. "Was that all you heard, the you seeing me as childish part?"

"Yeah, why did you say anything else about me?" Sabine asked casting a sideways glace at Ezra.

Ezra swiped the datapad from Sabine and shrugged haplessly while giving her his best charming smile. "Nothing much, I was just confessing my eternal and undying love for you."

Sabine was shocked. Then she stopped and realized that Ezra was only kidding her. She smiled and gave Ezra a weary shake of her head. "Okay, okay I get it. It's none of my business what you say to your master."

Ezra enjoyed the looked of Sabine's smiling face and marveled at the way her colorful hair played in motion over her lovely eyes. Of courses Ezra's reactions were hidden under the mask of the carefree street hustler so Sabine was none the wiser.

Compared to messing with the Empire how dangerous could young and naive love be anyway?

As the two teenaged humans left, Kanan thought about how to broach the subject of life without powerful emotional attachments. As the Jedi pondered that Ezra stuck his head back into Kanan's room. As if reading his master's mind Ezra pointed an accusing finger at Kanan and said one word.

"Hera."

Kanan was about to respond but the look Ezra gave him was enough to silence him. The message was clear, 'you want to talk about how I feel for Sabine then get ready to talk about how you feel for Hera.'

After Ezra left for a second time Kanan thought it over and decided that Jedi who live in glass temples shouldn't throw stones.

-The End-

I've fallen somewhat in love with Star Wars Rebels. Which is odd because Disney dose such a terrible job with it's Marvel properties.

So I had the thought that if Ezra was raised on the streets then where did he go to school? The answer I had was he didn't so the crew will have to teach him. This however is plot line used in the manga Jormungand were the child solider Jonah has to tutored by the rest of his mercenary unit. I just thought it worked well here as someone has to teach Ezra non-Jedi things.

Some confessions from an unapologetic and sentimental romantic fool. I do ship Kanan and Hera, so Jedi code be damned.

I also have some good feelings for Ezra and Sabine as well. I would like to see more of them together so I known how to write them better. It's clear that Ezra infatuated with Sabine and she handles it well if a dismissive of his obvious advances. Still they seem to get closer when Ezra's not trying to be a charming scoundrel and is just himself. That is brave but troubled and kind but frustrated and a little dark (side).

Thank you for reading and please leave a review telling me what you thought.


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